Tuesday, 26 April 2016

Take Your Sleep Seriously! Here is why

Sleep is a condition of body and mind such as that which typically recurs for several hours every night, in which the nervous system is relatively inactive, the eyes closed, the postural muscles relaxed, and consciousness practically suspended. I bet many of you didn't know that sleep had a definition.

Sleep plays a vital role in our well-being throughout our life. Its importance cannot be overemphasized, the way you wake up the next morning depends on how well you slept the night before.

Sadly, many of us don't take sleep seriously, we might stay up late watching tv, doing office work, or just playing around. Maybe you are not aware how important sleep is for your mental, physical and psychological health,

All the reasons provided here are based on studies, research and also from how I feel when I wake up after a good night's rest

So lets go down to why you should take your sleep seriously,

Eating Habit

Sleep helps maintain a healthy balance of the hormones that make you feel hungry (ghrelin) or full (leptin). I also noticed that when I don't get enough sleep I eat more. Ever felt so? Well this can be explained when you don't get enough sleep, your level of ghrelin goes up and your level of leptin goes down (ghrelin hormone increases you appetite while leptin decreases your appetite. In other words ghrelin tells you to continue eating while leptin tells you to stop eating). This makes you feel hungrier than when you're well-rested, which also increases your risk of obesity
Daytime Performance and Safety

Ever, noticed watching Novelas or Big Brother all night and you go to sleep late and wake up and go to work or school and you start sleeping then you wake and you sleep again continuously.
Well lack of sleep may lead to microsleep, which is brief moments of sleep, even after you are awake. Well you can't control microsleep, meaning you are putting yourself and other road users at at risk when you drive.
This will definitely affect your studies as you spend more time sleeping in class than listening to the lecturer.

Brain Function and Emotional Well-Being

While you sleep your brain prepares for the next day. Studies have shown that a good night sleep improves sleeping, enhances your learning, decision-making and problem-solving skills.

Now lack of adequate sleep just does the opposite of that, just imagine yourself already an adult unable to calculate 2 + 2 because of lack of sleep. Impossible right?
Well, sleep deficiency has also been linked to other problems like depression and suicide. Children and teenagers who are sleep deficient may have low self esteem, no self-control, feel depressed or sad. They will have problems paying attention in class leading to low grades.

Immune System

Your immune system depends on sleep to stay healthy. Your immune system is the system that defends your body against infections and diseases. Prolonged sleep deficiency can change the way in which your immune system responds. If you are sleep deficient you will have trouble fighting the common infections. Boost your immune system with adequate sleep now.

Risk of Diabetes

Lack of adequate sleep may increase your risk for diabetes. Ask me how? Well Sleep affects how your body reacts to insulin, which is the hormone that controls your blood sugar (glucose) level. Lack of sleep results in a abnormally high blood sugar level, which equals to an increase in your risk for diabetes.

Others

Sleep also supports healthy growth and development.
Deep sleep triggers the body to release the hormone that promotes normal growth in children and teens.
This hormone also boosts muscle mass and helps repair cells and tissues in children, teens, and adults.
Sleep also plays a role in puberty and fertility.

Read Also: Stop slouching here is how to maintain Good Sleeping, Sitting and Walking Posture

Now readers when `I say sleep I d`on't mean that you should be lazy and sleep the whole day. There is a recommended amount of sleep for toddlers, children, teens and adults.

Here is the statistics for the recommended amount of sleep. Statistics Credit http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov

Age Recommended Amount of Sleep
Newborns 16–18 hours a day
Preschool-aged children 11–12 hours a day
School-aged children At least 10 hours a day
Teens 9–10 hours a day
Adults (i.e both elderly) 7–8 hours a day